Short hops and hard knocks with Red Sox beat writer Ian Browne.

Smoltz in holding pattern

John Smoltz is Major League ready. Now the Red Sox just need to find a rotation spot for him. The future Hall of Famer expects to pitch Thursday — but he doesn’t know if it will be for the Red Sox or one more outing for Pawtucket.

He couldn’t be any more on board with the program and is actually excited to be on a team so deep that it’s this hard to figure out where he fits in.

“We’re going to leave those options open for the next week and see what happens,” said Smoltz. “There’s a lot of off-days. And I’m tickled to death to be at this point vs. struggling, having to figure out when I was going to return.”

More later.

Like this:

LikeLoading...

Related

42 Comments

We can call this a draw and split the title of “most polite and charitable fan toward a “challenged”player!! I can understand how you’ll have to vent tonight. But I’m sure if Lugo makes one mis-step, Tito will pull him and put Nick in the game!!
GO AHEAD AND VENT TO YOUR HEARTS DESIRE… YOU HAVE EANRED IT MY FRIEND!!!!

Ellen,
I’m literally sick to my stomach. Fracona pulled Nick Green who’s on fire and put in the water fountain of a thousand leaks of Julio Lugo. I’m really depressed. Very few times in my life have I had such loathing for a player. That and Dice-K will make this contest a battle of wills to decide what will kill my stomach quicker.
Lugo will make a bunch of errors and sure enough he’s signed in the next ten games. #$#$ Francona. O.K…My vent is done.

Now as for Dice-K,
You make a ton of money and you pitch crappy. I’m tired of Dice-K and I’m tired of his pitching. He burns through a bullpen and is not worth the money. Henry should have let him go to the Mets.
IN fairness we sort of needed him in 2007…I guess and he was the ONLY consistent winner in 2008 but this is 2009 so like I can now hate him.
If Nick Green was playing tonight I’d be OK…but he’s not. I understand that. I have to agree with 007chow. Francona is OK as a manager to the press and a big pitcher manager but the idea of playing Lugo tonight means to me he can be an idiot as well.
OK…my second and FINAL vent is done…promise.

I am REALLY hoping that Dice K can pull it all together tonight.. I really don’t understand him… What he has worked in Japan, but it definitely hasnt been here this season!!!
Anyway, I am going to keep skipping the Pre-game cheer, until its time not to skip it!! lol..
Should be an interesting game.
BTW did anybody read how Girardi called the Commisioners office to ask for Penny’s suspension??? AROD probably ran up to him and said.. “if you love your #1 superstar, you’ll call the commissioners office and tell on Brad..if you don’t I’m going to put on more pink lip gloss and pout some more, will you send in the photographers so they can get pictures of that?!!!” When they suspend Chamberlain for all of his “slips/losses of control” they can suspend Penny.. In all but the final game of this last series a Yankee pitcher has hit a REDSOX batter. We’re talking 8 games straight!!! going back to last season…. at least that’s what I read..

Speaking of Yankees — lets spread this around TO THE MAX if you haven’t heard it already — maybe I am the last to hear — but the new Yankee stadium was named by a sports caster on Around the Horn of ESPN the other night as “The House That Ruth-less-ness Built”. I suppose I don’t need to point out the double entendre there :)

Both teams have to deal with it — I would say the biggest blow to us is that we had a pitcher on the ropes already — if the delay is long enough, we could have a whole new pitcher — but their bullpen is probably more worked than ours with three extra inning games in a row.

What happens if a game is called in less than 5 innings — do you start over on another date at the same inning and score — or do you play a whole new clean game?

Ellen — you’re right — except I wouldn’t put it on my car, as rabid as fans are, maybe just go around and stick on known Yankee fans cars at night :) — but we do need the spread the term, and make it stick like Evil Empire.

Guys, GUYS! Stop calling Tito stupid for putting Lugo in for tonight! Yes Lugo is struggling and I would much rather Greeney in tonight but he has started since June 5th every game… He’s not use to that considering this is his first year every to start more than 5 games in a row! He may of needed this rest more than anyone on the field.

As much as I want Lugo to fail tonight and we still win I was happy that he went 4-5… I wanted this game to be the nail in his coffin to show us he needed to be traded but yet, he has his best game ever in a red sox uni haha…

I never knew having too many good players on a team could be such a headache.. I hope this will be our rotation(in order)
Beckett,Lester,Smoltz,Penney,Wake. Send Dice K to Trip A to let him rethink of ever pitching his season away in the World Classic or put him on a 30 day DL to let his arm rest. he showed so much fatigue in that 4th Inning tonight.. Ok I’m done with my rant

Meta

The following are trademarks or service marks of Major League Baseball entities and may be used only with permission of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. or the relevant Major League Baseball entity: Major League, Major League Baseball, MLB, the silhouetted batter logo, World Series, National League, American League, Division Series, League Championship Series, All-Star Game, and the names, nicknames, logos, uniform designs, color combinations, and slogans designating the Major League Baseball clubs and entities, and their respective mascots, events and exhibitions.